


Fire

by TuppingLiberty



Series: TLIB FFC 2021- original works [8]
Category: Original Work
Genre: Coming Out, M/M, Philosophical talk, Pre-Slash, Sexualtiy Talk, Talk of Dying in a Fire, Teenagers, talk of past lives
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-14
Updated: 2021-02-14
Packaged: 2021-03-15 15:08:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 559
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29438031
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TuppingLiberty/pseuds/TuppingLiberty
Summary: FFC Day 8: FireFeaturing: Two teenagers on the late shift, philosophizing
Relationships: Original Male Character/Original Male Character
Series: TLIB FFC 2021- original works [8]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2138628
Comments: 3
Kudos: 7
Collections: February Ficlet Challenge 2021: Apocalypse No





	Fire

"I think in a past life, I died in a fire." 

Bri looks over at his coworker, Aaron, an eyebrow raised. Work is dead, no customers in sight, but they're required to have at least two people in the burger joint at all times. Bri doesn't mind late nights with Aaron; he's a hard worker, and easy to get along with. But sometimes, he says things that are fucking out of left field. 

Bri probably shouldn't be surprised anymore, but...well..."Past life, huh?"

"I hate fire." Aaron happens to be staring at the pilot light on the stove top they use to grill burgers.

“Okay, how much weed did you smoke before coming on shift today?” 

Aaron rolls his eyes in that endearing way he has. “Not all deep thoughts come from intoxicants, Bri-Bri.” 

“Sure. Okay, so, what makes you think you died in a fire in a past life?” 

“Don’t you ever get that feeling? Like...the anxiety that keeps you up at night, it never takes form as something over and over and over again? When I was a kid, I bugged my parents for ages until they got me a fire ladder for my window just to shut me up about it. I used to check it before bed every night. I just- I just have this  _ feeling.” _

Aaron is ridiculous, Bri thinks, but compelling. He lets his thoughts drift out, trying to think if he’s ever had a ‘feeling.’ “I guess...maybe sometimes I think about…” 

He trails off, too embarrassed by the thought to bring it up near midnight in their fast food chain kitchen of all places. 

“Come on, I told you a deep, dark scary thing, now you gotta tell me,” Aaron cajoles with good nature. Bri knows that if he decided to drop it, Aaron would let him. 

“I think about if...our souls are tied to our sexuality. Like…” Bri blushes. “Like, I wonder if I’ve always liked guys, no matter what form I’ve taken.” 

Aaron looks him in the eye, his own eyebrows raised in surprise. 

“Oh god, please don’t look at me like that. Forget I said anything, I wasn’t trying to make this awkward. Let’s just go back five minutes. So, fire, huh?” 

Aaron crosses his arms over his chest, but he keeps looking at Bri’s face kindly. He reaches out, his fingers drifting over Bri’s tense upper arm. “Hey, Bri, I’m really glad you told me, huh? That’s...cool.” 

“Cool?” 

“You know. Neat.” 

Bri looks up and meets Aaron’s eyes again, and then he has to laugh because Aaron is ridiculous. Aaron is always ridiculous, and also Aaron makes Bri feel safer than anyone else in the world. “Neat, yeah. That’s how I think of it.” 

They both laugh, and Bri feels a blush high on his cheeks, but also like a ten pound weight has been lifted off of his heart. He laughs again, and can’t stop, until he’s wiping away tears that are half-sad, half-happy. 

Aaron’s arms come around him in a warm hug, tapping once on his back before releasing him. “I’ve got your back, bro.” 

The clocks ticks over to midnight, and Bri reaches over to turn the gas off. “And I’ve got yours. No fires here.” 

With a grin, Aaron turns to start breaking down the line for the night. 

**Author's Note:**

> Comments and Kudos are always appreciated!


End file.
